The Social and Industrial history of
Scotland, from the Union to the present timeBy James MacKinnon (1921)

PREFACE

In a recently published work
(Messrs Blackie & Son) the author eviewed the Social and Industrial History
of Scotland from the earliest times to the Union. In the present work he
reviews this branch of Scottish History from the Union to the present time.

There is room for such a
work, in view of the widespread interest at the present time in social and
industrial history, and the lack of an adequate review of that of Scotland
during the past two centuries. The valuable works of Sir Henry Craik and Dr
Mathieson do not go beyond 1843, and are, besides, largely concerned with
politics in church and state. The special work of Mr Bremner on The
Industries of Scotland, published in 1869, is full of valuable information
as far as it goes, but is rather ill-arranged and ill digested. The half
century from 1869 to the present time has been largely left in abeyance by
the historian. It is one of extraordinary and complicated development,
particularly in the industrial sphere, and should appeal strongly to the
reader of to-day, inasmuch as it is bound up so closely with his own
experience.

The lack of special works on
this part of the period has made the writing of this one no easy task. The
Author has had to search over a wide field for his material, and has found
difficulty at times in obtaining first-hand information. He has by no means
exhausted the field, and professes only to give a review which, while
intended for the general reader, as well as for teachers and students of
Scottish history, may serve as an introduction to farther intensive study.
To this end, he has added, at the conclusion of each part, a list of sources
from which he has drawn his material.

He desires to express his
obligations to many friends from whom he has received valuable information
in the course of his studies—in particular, to his colleagues, Professors
Wallace and Hudson Beare; Dr Oliver, Principal of the South of Scotland
Central Technical College; Dr David Murray, Glasgow; Sir John Lindsay, D.L.,
Town Clerk of Glasgow; Mr Paton, City Chamberlain, and Mr Fenton, Depute
City Chamberlain, Edinburgh; Sir John Ross, LL.D., Dunfermline; Mr J. L.
Innes, Kirkcaldy; Mr James E. Bell, Mr Duncan McGlashan, and the late Mr
David Deuchars, M.V.O., Edinburgh; Mr Nicholson, Librarian, Mr Cuthbertson,
Assistant Librarian, and the Staff of Edinburgh University Library. To Mr
James A. R. MacKinnon, LL.B., Advocate, he is indebted for valuable legal
information and for useful suggestions in the course of reading the proofs.

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